Here's what that huge development on Communications Hill might look like (slideshow)

Via City of San Jose/KTGY is the architect

Want to see what's coming to Communications Hill? First, a caveat: These are just conceptual plans of what homes could look. The idea is that you'll have a number of styles -- including modern, traditional, and industrial -- and different product types (such as townhomes, rowhomes, and podium flats).

It's notable -- and heartening -- that the styles include some interesting diversity beyond the Italian-inspired look that, while classy, has dominated recent projects so much.

KB Home is working with KTGY Architecture + Planning, a firm that has done distinctive work in retail, residential, and mixed use. Locally, it's worked on the Carmel Loft House in Sunnyvale and Via, Essex Property Trust's development also in Sunnyvale.

The image here shows a modern/contemporary look. Now, get ready for quite a change in the next one...

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Nathan Donato-Weinstein: Real Estate Reporter- Silicon Valley Business Journal; Email | Twitter

If you've been reading the Business Journal, you already know that the next phase of Communications Hill is rolling ahead. Now we have some pictures of what the development could end up looking like (take a walk through the slideshow to see).
Residential architecture for new developments in the 'burbs doesn't get a ton of ink -- and when it does, one adjective often used is "cookie cutter." That's a shame, given the amount of time we spend in our houses and apartments these days (especially if you're binge-watching "Orange Is the New Black.")
Why pay attention to this project in particular? Spearheaded by public homebuilder KB Home, it hasn't gotten a lot of attention, but it's one of the most transformative in the region. The current plans call for up to 2,200 new residential units plus some retail and a future industrial zone on Communications Hill, the 400-foot-tall, 500-acre hill that was partially developed a few years ago and then took a break during the real estate downturn.
But besides size, there are a few other reasons to watch this project. For one thing, it is one of the most (if not the most) visible sites in the Valley. (We don't exactly have a lot of hills around here.) The Communications Hill Specific Plan, adopted in 1992, lays out a development vision unique for the South Bay -- a vision inspired by San Francisco's Telegraph Hill and Marin County's Sausalito. You can see that in the grid pattern and steps that are key features of the existing developments there.
KB Home is proposing to build out the rest of the hill, which means building on about 79 acres (the rest of the 328 gross acres would be a mix of open space, park land, and public rights of way).